SAN ANTONIO – The 19th-ranked Trinity baseball team earned a series split with #22 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a 9-1 win in Sunday's series finale, as starting pitcher
Jackson Teer (San Antonio, Texas / Johnson) delivered a record-breaking performance.
Teer tossed a complete-game four-hitter and tied Trinity's all-time record with 20 strikeouts among the 29 batters he faced. The record was originally set by Jimmy Wingate in 1965, and Mike Frost was the only other Tiger pitcher to come close when he finished with 18 strikeouts in 2004. Teer did not walk a batter in the game and the only run he allowed was on a solo homer in the seventh inning. The 20 strikeouts for Teer is also a new record among Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference teams, beating out Frost for that distinction.
Nicholas Lazzara (Carrollton, Texas / Jesuit College Prep) finished with two hits and two RBI in the game, including a home run.
Colt Harris (Katy, Texas / Houston Christian) scored twice and drive in two more runs in the game, while
Jack Baker (Sugar Land, Texas / Ridge Point) had two hits and two RBI.
Jack Peterson (Round Rock, Texas / Round Rock) had a solo homer and scored two runs in the game.
Diego Gomez (Pharr, Texas / PSJA) drove in two runs with a pinch-hit double in the eighth.
The Rundown
Teer struck out the first six batters he faced in the game, then struck out two more in the third to bring his total to eight over the first three frames. Peterson led off the bottom of the third with his only hit of the game – a solo homer to right-center to give his pitcher a one-run cushion.
The fourth and fifth innings meant four more strikeouts for Teer, and UW-Whitewater got its first hit with an infield single with two outs. Teer promptly picked the runner off first and ended the inning. The lead was still just one run in the sixth when the Warhawks got a one-out hit against Teer and tried to bunt the runner into scoring position. The bunt hung up in the air just long enough for Teer to make a diving catch, then he threw out the runner at first for an inning-ending double play – his first inning without multiple strikeouts.
Maddox McDonald (San Antonio, Texas / Antonian) led off the bottom of the sixth with a bunt single, then moved to second on a sacrifice. That's when Lazzara slammed a homer to right-center to make it a 3-0 lead for Teer and the rest of the Tigers. The Warhawks went to the bullpen, but Trinity kept on rolling with back-to-back singles from
Cristian Holloway (Brownsville, Texas / Veterans Memorial) and
Brandon Nelson (Missouri City, Texas / Ridge Point). Harris then drove in two more runs with a double and moved to third on the throw home. Baker drove in Harris two batters later to make it a 6-0 lead for Trinity.
Whitewater got on the board with a two-out homer in the seventh inning against Teer, though he did pick up two more strikeouts to bring his total to 15 – edging out his 14 punch-outs from his only other appearance this season. Trinity went quietly in the bottom of the inning, then Teer came out and struck out the side in the eighth to equal the mark Frost set 20 years ago.
The offense wanted to make sure he was well-rested for the ninth, so the Tigers added three more runs to make it a 9-1 game. Harris walked to set up Baker for a two-out RBI double, then Peterson was hit by a pitch ahead of Gomez. He delivered the final runs of the game with a double to left-center.
Teer gave up a single to start the ninth and then went to a 3-0 count on the next batter. He threw three straight strikes for his 19th strikeout of the day. After the next batter grounded out, he got his 20th strikeout to finish off the win as the Tiger dugout erupted and celebrated with him.
Up Next
Trinity remains at home for a busy week of games, playing five games over a stretch of six days. The week begins with the Tigers hosting University of Mary Hardin-Baylor on Tuesday, March 5, at 7:00 p.m.
